The Kookaburra Gambit

About the author

Claire McNab is an Australian native who now lives in Los Angeles and has written over 50 books (crime fiction, children’s novels, picture books, self-help, and English textbooks). She is best known for being the author of three lesbian mystery series. She was president of Sisters in Crime and is a member of the Science Fiction and Mystery Writers of America. She was the 2006 Medal Winner of the Alice B. Awards and nominated for the 1996 Lammy Lesbian Award.

Summary

Kylie Kendall, a transplanted Australian, lives in LA and owns 51% of a detective agency - courtesy of her father. She gets her first case when twins Alf and Chicka Hartnidge, creators of Australia’s hit children’s show The Ox Mob, hire her to discover who is smuggling opals into the States inside their Kelvin Kookaburra plush toys. Kylie navigates the case while trying to win over her business partner, Ariana Creeling. Kylie ends up solving the case by indicting Brother Owen, the leader of the Church of Possibilities, who is reminiscent of Scientology and the owner of Lamb White. Lamb White is attempting to make The Oz Mob into movies. Throughout the book, Ariana and Kylie’s slow-burn relationship is filled with a few kisses and sexual encounters that give the readers hope that they may eventually be more than business partners in future books. The ending creates a hook for readers to continue with the Kylie Kendall Mystery Novels in hopes that they final end up together.

Analysis

The book’s purpose is entertainment. To take readers on the adventures with Kylie Kendall. The main plot of all of Kylie Kendall’s novels revolves around a mystery or a case that needs to be solved, with a subplot of a slow-burn romance and relationship building with the characters around her. Additionally, this book gives queer readers an accurate and meaningful representation of themselves in the book, providing another dimension.

Cultural Context

This book was written in 2005, which is ten years before same-sex marriage was legal in the United States and Australia (2015 and 2017, respectively). Given the time period, the abundance of characters who openly belong to the LGBTQIA+ community beyond just the main characters is astounding. There is even plot development regarding being closeted; however, the characters are deeply homophobic due to beliefs within the Church of Possibilities. 

This book is set in Los Angeles, which has been known for its budding LGBTQIA+ community since the 1900s. In 1977, Los Angeles hosted the first legally permitted pride parade, known then as the Gay Pride Parade. West Hollywood has explicitly been a hub, even getting the nickname “Boystown,” known for its exclusivity for white, wealthy, gay men. 

Works Cited

Graeme. “Claire McNab - Book Series in Order.” Book Series in Order, 15 Mar. 2019, www.bookseriesinorder.com/claire-mcnab/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2024.

Hernández, Caitlin. “How West Hollywood Became LA’s Fabled and Flawed LGBTQ+ Haven.” LAist, 9 May 2023, laist.com/news/la-history/gay-west-hollywood-history-boystown-lgbt-inclusive-queer. Accessed 8 Mar. 2024.

Light, Alan. Los Angeles Gay Pride, June 1995. 11 Nov. 2007. Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Los_Angeles_Gay_Pride,_June_1995.jpg. Accessed 8 Mar. 2024.

“McNab, Claire – Bella Books.” Bellabooks.com, 2024, www.bellabooks.com/category/bella-author-claire-mcnab/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2024.

McNab, Claire. The Kookaburra Gambit: A Kylie Kendall Mystery. Alyson Books, 2005.